1. Field of the Invention
In general, the present invention relates to uniquely identifiable transaction card systems. More particularly, the present invention relates to a new and improved transactional card component and identity transfer, system and method for making.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There is a substantial market for inexpensively manufactured, individually identified, transaction cards for such uses as store credit cards, gift cards, membership cards, I.D. cards, and the like. These transaction cards typically include information/data which has been applied to the card with unique characteristics. Often this encoding is done through bar codes that are used in conjunction with an optical scanner, magnetic stripes used in conjunction with a magnetic/electric scanner, and often combinations of both. These formats permit automatic machine scanning of the card for identification, transactions and so forth. Typically, these cards are supplied in sets with one or more removable elements, such as fobs, tokens, tags, and the like being supplied with each card and bearing the same individual unique identifying information, like code numbers, as the card for attachment to key rings, previously existing cards, application forms, membership lists, and such.
Typically, a card is a paper or plastic printed product that contains information that is affiliated with a user-specific program, group or promotion. Cards may contain unique data (applicable to that specific card), generic data (applicable to a group), customized printed graphics, associated technologies (bar code, magnetic stripe, signature panel, SIMM chip, SMART chip, microprinting). A card can be any size, but is generally in the industry described as credit-card sized, 2.125 inch by 3.375 inch object. Of note, a card may also be a reference to or be described by the term “key tag” or “key fob”. Likewise, any other size of usable planer product that can be removed from a component matrix of like materials may also generally be referred to as a “card”, “element” or “component”.
The terms, “matrix”, “carrier”, or “card assembly”, are a reference to the means to hold the component parts together throughout the manufacturing process and deliver the component parts to the end-user in one combined piece. Generally, these are made of a material that eventually is transformed into the component parts associated with transactional card systems where the multiple removable components may carry a unique identifiable information or code that is common among all elements. All components share this common information for the purpose of providing the card issuer or card user with various options for the manner in which the matrix unit is issued and subsequently used in transactions thereafter. A “card unit” or “matrix unit” or “card assembly” is generally a reference to a combination of component parts within a surrounding matrix made of the same material. The matrix is often the card material that surrounds the usable product on some or all sides of the products. Usable product are the pieces that will punch out to be consumed and/or saved and used by the consumer such as but not limited to key tags, cards, and other usable items including additional reference elements.
A magnetic stripe is generally a reference to a narrow band of metallized tape that can receive and store magnetic energy in one, two and/or three tracks of information. Encoding is a general reference to the placement of variable data on magnetic media via magnetic energy.
Furthermore, activation is a general reference to the systematic authorization of a card as it is first distributed for use, usually via activation swipe through a point-of-sale terminal or barcode scan, transmitted to the parent data control system that verifies and authorizes subsequent card activity. The term data is a general reference to any type of affiliated data that specifically relates to a matrix unit's contents, such as account number, bar code, serial number, SKU, PIN, or other identifiable data.
Cards within a like-material matrix are offered for a variety of commercial uses, such as phone cards, gift cards, membership cards, voucher cards, display cards, coupon cards, frequent shopper cards, loyalty cards, and other uses. These card-based products are often issued and possibly activated at the retail setting prior to issuance to the consumer via an activation swipe or barcode scan or manual data entry. The typical matrix concept, sometimes known as a co-planer carrier, generally utilizes the traditional credit card size operation that is common in the plastic and paper card/voucher industry, such as gift cards, phone cards, loyalty cards, frequent shopper cards, membership cards, ID cards, and access cards.
The term “card component transfer” refers to the market's increasing need for various pieces, or components, of a whole unit, to be transferable to a secondary use. Prior art has attempted to affix an adhesive strip to the outside of various components for use later. What is needed is a more creative and durable products especially when unique data is involved.
The term “card identity transfer” refers to the industry's need to register a specific, unique identifying code or number to the end-user of the card unit at the time the card unit is issued to the end-user. When transferring ownership or possession of the card unit from the card issuer to the card unit's end-user, the industry requires that the end-user be linked to that card unit's future transactions such as retail purchases, visits, participation levels, and responses to marketing efforts. At the time of card issuance, it is critical to register the card unit's unique identifying code or number to the end-user's related demographic and personal information such as name, address, household demographic information and so forth. If a card unit is first issued to the end-user without subsequent linkage and registration, the end-user's future transactional data, shopping habits, visit frequency, and so forth is not useful to the card issuer and the card unit is thereafter “orphaned” within a registry database.
Registration of an end-user's personal or demographic information is commonly performed via an application form in which the end-user writes or types their unique information. These forms are typically paper fill in sheets or even electronic fill in screens. This application form is then added to a customer database via scanning, manual data entry, or digital photography. Important to the linkage of the end-user to the card unit is the ability to transfer the card unit's unique identifying information to the end-user's application prior to transferring ownership and possession of the card unit from the issuer to the end-user.
Application forms are commonly a printed form with either a glossy or fibrous paper or plastic surface, like many traditional enrollment forms. When transferring an identity component from the card unit to an application form, a means of adhering/affixing the identity component to the application form is required.
In the prior art, some card manufacturers have created card matrix combinations that end results in a card and two key tags, a card and one key tag, two cards only, two cards and two key tags, etc. Furthermore, it is known to produce a matrix with a hang hole in the upper portion for use as a structural display carrier with the usable component parts detachable upon purchase and possible activation either before or after components have been attached. To these and other possible constructions, in the prior art, an identity component is incorporated somewhere on or around the card unit.
In the prior art, relating to how card units may be constructed, manufacturers commonly achieve a finished card product in the using a white opaque or transparent printing sheet, “substrate” is printed via standard printing technology such as litho, offset, web, gravure, digital or other static printing process (i.e. inks are applied uniformly to the substrate and print the same base artwork with each printing revolution of the printing press). Such printing is commonly performed on front and back with the customer's desired artwork. Artwork on the card unit front may consist of a logo, marketing campaign, graphics, text, and other features that make the card unit front a presentable product to their end-user. Artwork on the card unit back often contains instructions for use, terms and conditions, security features, and any other administrative or systemic marking or information that is helpful to the customer's card program. Cards are sometimes manufactured with no artwork printed via standard methods on one or both sides and are considered in embodiments below.
Although card units can be cut from substrate following printing standard printing processes, the card industry for 40 years has applied a protective plastic layer on each side of the substrate to preserve the quality of the printing and add a stiffness to the card unit body. Plastic layers, adhered to the substrate on one or both sides via a laminating process can be made of PVC, polyester, polypropylene, and other finished plastics. This layer of plastic varies in thickness and durability by the choice of the manufacturer and his customers based upon economic, security and product durability considerations.
The card industry is specialized in its ability to also apply data to card units per the intended use of the customer and his end-user. Such data can include variable data including names, addresses, serial numbers, control numbers, bar codes, reference codes and text, and other data elements that reflect the particular card unique among all others. It may also include fixed data such as program codes, batch and lot numbers, category markings, card retail value, and other data elements that are common among a group of cards, and any other type of information. Such data is applied to the card unit in three general approaches.
The first being through direct data printing upon the substrate before it receives a laminated protective layer—where the master substrate sheet may contain one or more card units printed with data on a per-sheet basis. The second may be through direct data printing upon the substrate where no laminated protective layer will ever be applied (such as a limited use card) where the data can be applied either to a master substrate sheet containing more than one card. A third may be through direct data printing after the card has been separated from the master substrate sheet, either laminated or unlaminated, and is a finished card product.
In the prior art approaches above for data imaging, for card manufacturers who serve customers requiring a more durable card product, the data is often printed on the master substrate sheet prior to lamination in an effort to maximize the durability of the data during the card's useful life. Therefore, a sheet-based imaging device applies data across a sheet containing one or more cards. During this process, variable and fixed data, sourced from a computer data file, are formatted via computer software to print on the sheet-based imaging device on a page-by-page basis. During this data printing process, the manufacturer can print any number of data images. For the card industry, data can be printed in position to fit within a card, keytag, fob, token, and any other space on the substrate that may eventually become a card component.
The manufacturer can control the relationship of this data across all card unit components and choose that all components reflect a common identity for that specific card unit. It is the ability to accurately and easily transfer the card unit's unique identity via detachment from the card unit to other linked uses such as customer application forms, existing cards in a customer's possession, calendars, and so forth where the industry is particular lacking.
In the prior art, manufacturers have met the needs of customers who wanted a detachable identity component via one of two methods. The first approach or hereinafter referred to as “Prior Method 1” involves applying a matching identity component after the card unit has been manufactured or finished. Typically, a finished card unit has been printed, imaged with necessary variable or fixed data for all needed components, laminated and die cut to form. In Prior Method 1, the identity component is made of different materials than the card unit. Common materials are thin plastics or paper, opaque white, with an adhesive on the underside of the thin plastic or paper. An Avery label is an example of this construction.
The post-production process in this prior art involves numerous steps and not necessarily in this order: passing the card unit under a scanner or camera; the scanner or camera reading the unique identifier and sending that information to a processing device (i.e. hardware and software); possibly performing a data table search for that specific data record; sending a signal to a label applicator device and applying an adhesive-backed label to the card unit (either before or after printing the label); sending a print signal to a printing device; printing device prints an image upon the adhesive-backed label that provides adequate reference/linkage to the card unit (e.g. bar code, account code, reference number), printing either before or after the adhesive-backed label is applied to the card unit; issuance of the card to end-user; at issuance, the removable label is applied to a secondary data use.
This prior art method has existed in the industry since the mid-1990s. The drawbacks of this prior art approach of Prior Method 1 to the identity component's design, printing and application are numerous, and can be separated into three general categories of quality, cost and “design for use”. Quality drawbacks to Prior Method 1 stem from the increased number of variables introduced into the final manufactured product. The following industry-wide considerations have been known to affect product quality.
In order for a identity component to be attached to the surface of the card unit, the card unit must be transported by a feeding and conveyor system so that it passes under a scanning apparatus and possibly the printing apparatus as the label is applied (the card unit would not have to pass under a printing apparatus if the label is printed just prior to being affixed to the card unit). Most often, the label must be affixed to the back side of the card unit where the other identical reference data is also located. Thus, the front side of the card unit usually displays the card issuer's artwork, logos, special colors, and unique designs. In this feed and transport process, the card's front surface is often scratched or scuffed as it is passed through the feeding mechanism and across conveyor chain or belt. In addition, the transport mechanism carries dirt, dust and possibly ink residue which can attach itself to the front of the card unit's surface, spoiling the clarity and quality of the most important artwork.
An additional quality issue arises when the label application equipment applies the label in an incorrect location due to label applicator error, sensor errors, card unit surface changes, or label material defects. When a label is applied incorrectly, it may be crooked (not parallel with the card unit's edges), it may be out of position and extending beyond the specified location on the card unit, or it may not be applied at all (skipped). In any similar instance, the card unit must be reworked by pulling off the misapplied label and possibly leaving adhesive residue and then re-run through the transport process. Some manufacturers simply re-label the card unit with another label on top of the misapplied label thereby when the card issuer attempts to pull off the appropriate label, both labels may become detached and complicate the application registry process.
When using a secondary scanning, printing and labeling process, the industry also experiences a matching error due to hardware and software errors in the label printing timing. When this error occurs, the printed label that is applied to the card unit does not match or relate to that specific card unit—and thus, it is labeled wrong and in the application entry process, the end-user is linked to the wrong card unit and the database registry for the card issuer is contaminated with faulty data. This situation is the highest risk and most serious consequences for the manufacturer and his card-issuing customer. Any secondary data printing process that occurs at a different stage of manufacturing of the card unit's other data components is subject to the errors of the transport, scanning, labeling and printing hardware and software. When human labor is added to this process, the risk of a identity component in label form not matching the card unit upon which it is applied is significant and very detrimental to the card manufacture and or card issuer relationship. In the card industry, manufactures have lost customers due to this mismatch problem. The fact is that no collection of scanning and printing software combined with human labor can overcome this potential serious problem and assure no mismatched label components have been applied to a card unit order. For example, in a card unit order of one million card units, if this error only occurs 0.001% of the time (a thousandth of a percent), at least 10 end-users will be registered into the issuer's database with the wrong card number.
An additional quality problem arises from the label stock used by the card manufacturer. Traditionally, such labels and their underlying liner are ordered in large spools and the labels are pre-cut for length, width and space between labels. Manufacturers of such labels, whether paper or plastic, have their own inconsistencies which affect the success of the labeling process, including: over-cutting labels where the label web is weakened and breaks in the label applicator's winding mechanism; uneven adhesive application to the back side of the label which changes label thickness or the absence of adequate adhesive makes the label not apply securely to the card unit; and inconsistencies in liner strength sometimes cause liner failure where the labeler winding mechanism breaks the weakened liner. In addition, label manufacturers have common variation in the label's position on its liner, varying as much as ⅛″ up or down in its linear position. This could mean a misplacement of up to ⅛″ too high on the card unit or ⅛″ too low on the card unit.
When any labeling error occurs where the label is out of position during its printing phase, the risk of misplaced printing with the unique identifier data or code is great. If the label stock is moving as it is unwound and placed under the printing mechanism, the print will be off-center where the important identity component's contents are shifted out of alignment, hanging off the label's edge, crooked or skewed printing, printing that is cut off and incomplete, etc. In cases where the desired information is printed incomplete, unreadable, cannot be scanned, or skewed, the end-user and card-issuer will simultaneously recognize the poor visual quality of the card unit's label presentation as the card issuer presents the card to the end-user. The card-issuer exchanges the card unit for the end-users personal application form, for example, and each party is able to see that the label is misprinted and of poor quality. In addition, if the label printing cannot be read or scanned correctly, the subsequent application data entry will be error prone and very likely result in this end-user's data not being linked to the card unit they were issued because application data entry processes cannot “guess” at what data has been cut off or is missing or illegible on the label. The application data industry currently struggles with unusable printed label data every day.
The quality of imaging of identifying label components is an inconsistent and troublesome issue for card customers. Common technologies used to print on labels in the process described above are either thermal transfer or inkjet. Thermal transfer processes use a thermal ribbon which releases the colored ink, like old typewriter disposable ribbon, when heated. Consequently, when these ribbons age, are exposed to varying temperatures, are used in older thermal printers, the consistency of the printing quality declines and leads to poor printing clarity and possible scanning problems for the data imaged. In addition, the thermal transfer process is considerably slower than the newer inkjet process. Thermal transfer systems require more frequent thermal ribbon change-overs, for example. Thermal transfer systems also require considerable more maintenance than inkjet systems. For inkjet applications, a much faster process requiring less maintenance, a liquid ink is either sprayed or rubbed onto the label surface as the label passes underneath the printing head. While thermal transfer can print at printing resolutions of up to 300 dots per inch (acceptable customer need for data clarity), inkjet processes cannot match such printing resolution. Inkjet systems in the card industry range from 128 dots per inch to approximately 250 dots per inch, depending on speed and increasing technology. Consequently, the quality of inkjet printed data is less dense if the manufacture desires to run the system at its maximum speed and gain efficiencies.
For printed bar codes, for example, some card manufacturer's inkjet printing systems print at a quality resolution that is less than the reading capability of the card-issuer's or application data entry's scanning equipment, causing problems in the registry of the end-user's identity with the card unit. For this reason, some card customers mandate a specific higher quality printing resolution on a data label component. In addition, inkjet systems must use either a water-based ink or a solvent-based ink or an ultra violet cured ink. Water based inks do not dry quickly and will smear when they touch other card units in the stacking process following labeling. Solvent based inks dry quickly but release methyl ethyl ketone fumes into the manufacturer's environment and such fumes are nauseous to factory workers and such ink waste must be handled by environmental control companies and destroyed at additional expense to the manufacturer. Ultra violet cured inks introduce three additional, very undesirable, environmental concerns to the factory environment: Potential exposure to intense UV light by factory workers (eyes and skin), exposure of skin to UV ink (irritant and carcinogen), and expensive containment and disposal requirements. All of the above issues with the two standard printing technologies create problems for the card customer and the card manufacture.
The cost drawbacks to Prior Method 1 stem from the increased processing and handling required by the manufacturer. The following industry-wide considerations have been known to affect product cost.
The application of a printed label to the card unit requires a secondary process. Many card manufacturers, after completing the card unit's manufacturing, must then feed and transport the product once again through the feed-transport-scan-print-label-stack process described above. This secondary processing has additional significant costs such as an additional production line is required with assets that may include a feeder, transport base, scanner, computer, printer, and labeler. These assets consume factory space, are expensive (approximately $100,000.00 USD or more) and each machine requires unique operator knowledge and maintenance adding overhead expense due to Prior Method 1. Additional factory workers are required to run this production line, at least two workers in most cases. This labor adds to the expense of Prior Method 1, costing from $0.003 to $0.005 USD per label printed and applied. Separate label and ink component raw materials are used in Prior Method 1, costing from $0.006 to $0.011 USD per label printed and applied.
A very significant issue is additional card unit waste. Prior Method 1 requires the secondary processing described above and each of the machine components has the ability to degrade or destroy the card unit. Consequently, the card manufacturer loses further revenue due to waste associated when cards are miss-labeled and must be reworked. When any labeling application error occurs on one card unit, it often affects all card units being transported along the conveyor transport also, possibly 10 to 20 card units. All of these must be manually checked for accuracy and/or collected and re-run through the process again. Card units that received labels but have incorrect data or no data at all must have the labels manually removed before re-running the cards. Needless to say this may be a very time consuming and labor intensive process.
The card manufacturer loses further revenue due to waste associated when such card units must be destroyed due to this secondary process when the card is no longer meeting quantitative or qualitative requirements. Most costly, and common in the industry, are card unit orders from customers which require all cards within a data range to be present. Thus, if the secondary processing described above destroys a card unit, the card manufacturer must start over the complete manufacturing process for that card unit, to include printing, data imaging, lamination and die cutting and re-labeling. Card unit waste costs under these circumstances are incredible in comparison to the revenue generated by the card unit itself.
Other known deficiencies in Prior Method 1 may include properties of the label or “design for use”. Labels designed for application directly to the plastic surface of the card unit are commonly designed with pressure-sensitive, reusable adhesive. Once the label is applied to the card unit surface, is exposed to air, humidity, dust, heat/cold and friction. The consequences of such exposure have proven to limit the “shelf life” of manufactured card units. Proven by customer feedback and known properties of adhesives, especially pressure-sensitive adhesives, exposure to such elements shortens the life and durability of the adhesive properties. Finished card units, shipped to the customer, are not necessarily used within any known span of time. Cards may remain unused for months or even years, depending on the card issuer's intentions, purchasing strategies, business circumstances and other reasons. The card issuer may store the unused card units in environments that are not climate controlled. The card issuer (customer) may leave open the card unit box in which several hundred or thousand cards are stored, thereby exposing the product to the environment. Additionally, card units may be bounced, removed from their box, returned to their box, sorted, inventoried, repacked, dropped and receive various care during storage. All of the above circumstances can lower the value of the customer's investment because the product is becoming less usable due to the impact upon the exposed adhesive and liner properties. Certainly, any customer storing cards will be inventorying those card units as assets and assuming full asset value when the cards are distributed to points of issue.
Further, when a label carrying unstable adhesive properties is lifted from the card unit, consequences may result due to the changed adhesive properties. The label can tear or stretch because the adhesive did not easily release from the card units' surface. The card issuer must then paste or tape the disfigured label to the secondary use (e.g. customer application form) and the label's data contents may be then unreadable, as in a bar code my be torn or stretched and unrecognizable by a scanner.
The label can leave adhesive residue on the card unit's surface due to the effects of the environment on the adhesive and its advanced curing upon the plastic surface. This glue residue remains on the card unit, is noticeable to the untrained eye, and becomes extremely noticeable as it attracts dirt and skin oils, eventually appearing darker and unsightly on the product the more it is handled.
The general second prior art approach, hereinafter referred to as “Prior Method 2”, involves imaging all card unit data, on the substrate sheet for each card's unique identifying data where among all other card unit components, one or more components are intended to further identify and link the card unit to a secondary intended use such as customer application forms, existing cards in a customer's possession, calendars, and so forth. In this method of data imaging, the card unit's identifying data has been printed at once, including data that may be used for all components that may be removed from the card unit and used elsewhere. Prior Method 2's approach may improve upon the quality and cost detriments of Prior Method 1 because a secondary data application process is unnecessary. Once data is imaged upon the substrate in Prior Method 2, the substrate sheet is laminated with two basic approaches to constructing any removable identifying element intended for card unit identity transfer.
Under this prior art, one approach is the substrate sheet is laminated where a portion of the substrate edge is left unlaminated on one or both sides of the substrate. For example, an 8 inch substrate sheet is laminated 7 inches across leaving 1 inch unlaminated. Another example would be for the same 8-inch substrate sheet to be laminated 6 inches across leaving 1 each on each side unlaminated. In either example, a card unit and all its possible components is cut as a whole from both the laminated area and the unlaminated area, presenting a finished card unit with a majority portion laminated and an unlaminated portion attached. It is in the unlaminated areas where additional data has been previously imaged that the manufacturer may die cut or perforate a shape surrounding the data whereby the card issuer can tear or break away this unlaminated portion of substrate and use that portion to transfer the card unit's identity to other uses. The remainder of the card unit, where laminated, consists of all other related components and may be issued to the end-user by the card issuer. However, some form of tape, staple, or other affixing device must be used to adhere the unlaminated portion of substrate to the related use to assure proper data linkage and end-user data registry as described above. Prior Method 2 also includes the placement of a common pressure-sensitive 3-layer adhesive tape to the surface of the unlaminated substrate opposite the identifying data. Such 3-layer adhesive tape consists of LINER+ADHESIVE+LINER construction.
During tape application, one layer of liner is removed as the remaining ADHESIVE+LINER is pressed against the card material's surface. Such tape carries a removable liner that extends beyond the underlying adhesive and is marked with such words as “REMOVE FOR USE. This type of tape is unrolled along the unlaminated portion of the entire substrate sheet, and is die cut with the rest of the card unit whereby the unlaminated substrate carrying the identifying data for transfer is cut to appropriate size for a removable component and the pressure-sensitive tape is cut to the same linear length. At the time of card issuance, the unlaminated removable component holding identifying data is removed from the card unit, the pressure-sensitive adhesive's liner is removed by the card issuer and the resulting component can be applied to any secondary use requiring identity transfer.
However, Prior Method 2 first approach has several deficiencies inherent to its art, including the appearance of the finished card unit, the process of construction and impact on quality of the card unit and the “design for use” of the removable components that have limited its success in the industry.
A typical deficiency in the Prior Art Method 2 is the appearance. Customer feedback in the industry describes the unlaminated portion of the card unit derived from this method as “floppy”, easy to bend and wrinkle, easy to get dirty, and generally not as appealing due to the unevenness of the card unit's surface. Also significant are customer observations such as described below.
Typically, printed graphics appear differently when laminated whereby a color printed both on the laminated and unlaminated portions of the substrate appear different. Often, colors appear deeper and denser when laminated. The off-white and sometimes printed “REMOVE” liner that extends the entire length of the unlaminated card edge detracts from the card unit's appearance. The card's appearance from the front is most important from a marketing perspective per the discussion on front vs. back artwork above. This pressure-sensitive adhesive liner takes attention away from the card unit's printed graphics and does not fit in well with any common card unit design.
In order for the unlaminated substrate to remain flat and in place with the rest of the card unit during die cutting, small notches are ground into the cutting die throughout the circumference of the removable data component's shape with the intention of not cutting the substrate in several locations throughout the circumference. While this cutting modification assists in the data component's remaining in place, they are a detriment to appearance due to the fact that in order to remove the data component from the card unit, those small areas not cut in the data components circumference must tear away as the component is removed. These tears appear as burs or bumps or stretched substrate fibers in both the data component once removed and in the remaining card body. In addition, the pressure-sensitive adhesive liner is also uncut where die cut notches have been placed and liner fibers are evident as torn. The remaining card unit, when given to the end-user, appears as though it has been torn in that area and is noticeable by the untrained eye.
Another deficiency to Prior Art Method 2 is due to the construction process and, hence, its impact on quality. Manufacturability is paramount to any process design and the above approach has several deficiencies that affect quality due to the approach for construction such as found in modern die cutting systems, where the sheet based substrate is laminated prior to die cutting and the die cutting machinery relies on the subject material to be in a consistent position for die cutting, with very little variation, in order to cut the card units with accurate, registered die cut edges. Often, artwork for card units is specifically created to extend to the cut seams of the card unit as a whole or artwork is created to extend only within the boundaries of a specific cut component within the card unit. Thus, the die cutting machinery requires that the subject material be consistent so that all cut lines appear in the appropriate artwork location. In the above approach, the unlaminated portions of the substrate, whether on one side or both, provide no firm edge by which most die cutting systems feed, cut and move the material. The “floppy” unlaminated edges provide a varying or “soft” edge which provides very little ability for the die cutting machinery to guide the material into the exact position with consistent placement and very little variation. The unlaminated design by this approach creates die cutting errors, misplaced cuts, and higher waste levels.
Further the unlaminated “floppy” substrate also is prone to wrinkling and receiving permanent creases due to being forced against machine guides during loading, feeding and stacking of the die cutting machinery often leading to higher waste and damaged product in the unlaminated areas. Also the unlaminated “floppy” substrate also is prone to picking up machine dirt and oil as it passes through any loading, feeding and stacking mechanism due to the fact that it is not protected by an over laminate.
Still further the Prior Art Method has general deficiencies in its “design of uses”. Since the unlaminated portion of the substrate is intended to yield the removable data component for the card unit's identity transfer, the approach fails to prevent problems in the use of the resulting unlaminated data component when the unlaminated identifying card component is torn from its related card unit, the substrate can stretch and disfigure due to the stress of removal by human hands. Also when affixed to the data components secondary use (e.g. customer application), if stretched or disfigured, the data component no longer lays perfectly flat and can affect the appearance and performance of the customer application for example. Performance in this case is affected by the handling and collating of multiple applications where an upturned edge of the data component “catches” the edge of another application during processing and drags the second application out of position. Since the pressure-sensitive adhesive tape carries an adhesive strip that is narrower than the removable data component, both the side edges of the data component, once affixed to its secondary use position, are void of adhesive material directly underneath the edges of the unlaminated substrate and this “ledge” invites other paper applications, for example, to be caught underneath this ledge during application processing which may slow down card issuer application data entry processing.
In a variation of the Prior Art Method 2, the substrate sheet is laminated fully where no portion of the substrate edge is left unlaminated on one or both sides of the substrate. For example, an 8 inch substrate sheet is laminated 8 inches across. A card unit and all its possible components are cut as a whole from the laminated area presenting a finished card unit with the entire unit laminated. Similar to the previously discussed, data for a removable identifying card component has been previously imaged on the substrate sheet that the manufacturer may die cut or perforate a shape surrounding the data whereby the card issuer can break away this laminated portion of substrate and use that portion to transfer the card unit's identity to other uses. The remainder of the card unit consists of all other related components and may be issued to the end-user by the card issuer.
However, some form of tape, staple, or other affixing device must be used to adhere the laminated identifying data component to the related use to assure proper data linkage and end-user data registry as described above. Once again, Prior Method 2 includes the placement of a common pressure-sensitive 3-layer adhesive tape (LINER+ADHESIVE+LINER) to the surface, but in the variation, the surface receiving the pressure-sensitive tape is the outer surface of the lamination opposite the identifying data. This tape is described more fully above. The tape is unrolled along the laminated surface of the entire substrate sheet and is die cut with the rest of the card unit whereby the laminated substrate carrying the identifying data for transfer is cut to appropriate size for a removable component and the pressure-sensitive tape is cut to the same linear length. At the time of card issuance, the laminated removable component holding identifying data is removed from the card unit, the pressure-sensitive adhesive's liner is removed by the card issuer and the resulting component can be applied to any secondary use requiring identity transfer.
Prior Method 2 second approach has several deficiencies inherent to its art, including the appearance of the finished card unit, the process of construction and impact on quality of the card unit and the “design for use” of the removable components that have limited its success in the industry. Customer feedback in the industry has observed numerous undesirable issues.
The significant appearance effect of the off-white and sometimes printed “REMOVE” liner that extends the entire length of the laminated card edge detracts from the card unit's appearance. The card's appearance from the front is most important from a marketing perspective per the discussion on front versus back artwork above. This pressure-sensitive adhesive liner takes attention away from the card unit's printed graphics and does not fit in well with any common card unit design.
In order for the laminated identifying data component to remain intact within the rest of the card unit during die cutting, small notches are ground into the cutting die throughout the circumference of the removable data component's shape with the intention of not cutting the substrate and laminate in several locations throughout the circumference of the shape. While this cutting modification assists in the data component's remaining in place, they are a detriment to appearance due to the fact that in order to remove the data component from the card unit, those small areas are not cut in the data components and the circumference must tear away as the component is removed. These tears, with laminate added to the substrate, appear as bigger burs or bumps or stretched substrate fibers in both the data component once removed and in the remaining card body. In addition, the pressure-sensitive adhesive liner is also uncut where die cut notches have been placed and liner fibers are evident as torn. The remaining card unit, when given to the end-user, appears as though it has been torn in that area and is noticeable by the untrained eye. Also, the remaining card unit, when given to the end-user, appears with an uneven cut edge on each side of the removed data component's prior position and is noticeable by the untrained eye.
Manufacturability is again an issue for Prior Method 2 due to different deficiencies that affect quality due to the approach for construction. In the above approach, since the entire substrate sheet is laminated, the pressure-sensitive adhesive tape is applied to the laminated surface of the entire edge of the sheet, on one or both sides, depending on the complexity of the sheet's design and card contents. This surface addition adds an additional 20-25% sheet thickness in the edge area only due to the adhesive and liner thickness. The result of this significant off-balance sheet thickness is the difficulty in stacking uncut sheets in the same orientation without causing the resulting stack as it grows in height to grow 20-25% higher on one side versus another. At a certain stack height, the stack is unstable and sheets can slide off the stack. Additionally, regardless of how many pressure-sensitive adhesive tape stripes are applied to a laminated substrate sheet, the sheets are difficult to stack and collate because when shuffled, a top sheet will catch the raised edge of the adhesive tape on the sheet beneath, requiring more labor to separate the stack to reinsert the “caught” sheet squarely between two others.
Still another deficiency is the Prior Art Method 2 is the “design for use”. The most common industry secondary use is the affixing of the removable data component to a customer application form, completed by the end-user of the card unit and transferred to the card issuer in exchange for the card and its associated rights and privileges. The end-user has written or typed his personal and/or demographic data on the form and an additional space on the form is reserved for the transfer of the removable data component from the card unit to the space on the form. The card issuer places the data component on the form and it is to remain in that position through the life of the form's processing. In processing, the form goes directly to data entry and its contents are typed into a computer database via human keystrokes. In this process, the form is stacked, boxed, separated for entry, and re-stacked and re-boxed. Increasingly, technology is allowing automated scanning of applications where stacks of customer application forms are loaded into an automated feeder/scanner and the forms are fed into a scanner, one at a time, and a picture is taken of the form and the form is then ejected. The picture is saved for later data entry. If the removable data component, when mounted to the application form is too thick or has un-affixed edge seams with the form beneath, the automated scanning devices jam and cannot feed the applications. This is the case with current automated systems and Prior Method 2 which yields the very thick data component if the customer wishes to have a protected data component during transit of the card unit and the uneven adhesive layer between the component and the form beneath.
When the removable data component for the card unit's identity transfer is laminated, the above approach incurs unique problems in the use of the resulting laminated data component. The most common laminated substrate sheet thickness, in its finished form, is 30-mil (0.030 inches). With the addition of the adhesive tape and liner, this thickness swells to 35-37 mil (0.035″ to 0.037″), depending on tape specifications. Using the above example of a paper customer application form, the form is commonly 4-6 mil (0.004″ to 0.006″) thick. When the fully laminated removable data component is removed from the card unit and placed upon a customer application form, the resulting combined thickness is 39-43 mil (0.039″ to 0.043″) thick. Performance in this case is affected by the handling and collating of multiple applications where such a significant addition of thickness due to the data component causes a stack of paper applications to tilt unsteadily at any stack height of 3 inches or more, where the top applications will slide downward due to the stacks imbalance. In addition, such a thick data component easily “catches” the application above and complicates application processing, which is performed with thousands of applications in stacks awaiting data entry.
As in the first approach, since the pressure-sensitive adhesive tape carries an adhesive strip that is narrower than the removable data component, both the side edges of the data component, once affixed to its secondary use position, are void of adhesive material directly underneath the edges of the laminated substrate and this “ledge” invites other paper applications, for example, to be caught underneath this ledge during application processing and slowing down card issuer application data entry processing.
In both approaches for Prior Art Method 2 described above, a very significant deficiency has been revealed to the industry over many years that either the unlaminated substrate in first approach or second, or the laminated substrate in the second, the pressure-sensitive adhesive tape and liner, applied to the surface, is exposed to air, humidity, dust, heat/cold and friction. The consequences of such exposure have proven to limit the “shelf life” of manufactured card units. Proven by customer feedback and known properties of adhesives, especially pressure-sensitive adhesives, exposure to such elements shortens the life and durability of the adhesive properties. Finished card units, shipped to the customer, are not necessarily used within any known span of time. Cards may remain unused for months or even years, depending on the card issuer's intentions, purchasing strategies, business circumstances and other reasons. The card issuer may store the unused card units in environments that are not climate controlled. The card issuer may leave open the card unit box in which several hundred or thousand cards are stored, thereby exposing the product to the environment. Additionally, card units may be bounced, removed from their box, returned to their box, sorted, inventoried, repacked, dropped and receive various care during storage. All of the above circumstances can lower the value of the customer's investment because the product is becoming less usable due to the impact upon the exposed adhesive and liner properties. Certainly, any customer storing cards will be inventorying those card units as assets and assuming full asset value when the cards are distributed to points of issue. Customer feedback on aged cards manufactured by this approach report the removable data component fails to adequately “stick” to the secondary use such as a customer application form.
In such cases, the component sticks temporarily and then falls off the application during movement of that application to many points of processing. Of note, the thicker the data component, the higher likelihood that it is bumped by an adjacent application and if the adhesive is aged, falls off. As stated above, this scenario results in an orphaned customer application with no specific reference to the issued card unit for that customer.
Generally, air, humidity, dust, heat and cold temperatures affect the properties of the adhesive. Friction refers to the cause of the adhesive liner, which is easily lifted, being caught during boxing, sorting and handling, where the liner is lifted either briefly or left hanging off the card unit and the adhesive is exposed to the air for a period of time.
Generally, Prior Method 2, with either the laminated or unlaminated removable data component as described above, requires the customer to choose between two polarized options of either a thin, unprotected substrate data component where the surface of the associated data is exposed to scuffing, heat, moisture and dirt or a thick, sometimes 30 to 35 mil protected laminated substrate data component that incurs further cumbersome issues for the processing of secondary use items such as customer application forms, as described above. What is needed is means to generally solve all of the above issues, for either of the Prior Art Method 1 or Prior Art Method 2, and creates additional opportunities for the manufacturer and the card customer.
The current industry is constantly looking for cheaper, effective, and durable uniquely identifiable transactional cards as well as methods and systems for implementation, imaging, affiliations with other uses requiring the transfer of a card unit's identity, and distribution to the consuming public. Thus, there is a need for a new and improved transactional card, system, and method of identification, component removal and transfer, card identity transfer and general use as outlined. The current invention provides an inexpensive and time saving device, improved card product appearance and functionality, method for making, and system where the prior art fails.